Speaking of terror: While we understand that the long delays and just straight up annoyance of a recent terrorist threat (not to mention the expensive bottle of Bumble & Bumble Sumo Tech you had to pitch from your carry-on) can be very stressful or whatever, perhaps people's resilience in the face of quotidian frustrations is being over-glorified? From the NYT:
The Personal Health column in Science Times on Tuesday, about treatments and prevention of migraines, misidentified a drug sometimes used for headache relief with medications like a triptan or an opiate. It is acetaminophen, not amphetamine.
Today's Thursgay examines the frightening possibility that regularly dumping a shitload of chemicals on your scalp might not be the healthiest thing you can do. While a recent study suggests a possible cancer link, epidemiologists caution that the findings are inconclusive. Still, we're not going to let a little thing like "science" keep us from our traditional role of furthering unsubstantiated scares, so there you have it: Your dye job is KILLING YOU. Apparently, the sixth stage of coif coloring is chemo.
Reuters, you are not alone. The news agency fired a photographer this weekend after it became clear that he had doctored war photos from Lebanon, but it would seem that Reuters isn't the only respectable news organization with this problem. While not quite so stupid as to get sloppy with Photoshop, Tyler Hicks of the venerable New York Times has some questionable work of his own. In this photo, a man appears to be pulling a remarkably un-dusty, possibly dead man from wreckage in Tyre — note the victim's shorts and his hat, which is conveniently tucked to his side. But in the later photos (after the jump), un-dusty possibly dead man seems to be doing just fine.
Number two on the list? Prosthetic limbs.
After a little vacation, Intern Alexis is back with her recap of the latest installment of the Times shitter-friendly Book Review. This week, Joe Queenan talks about how's he such a darn good reader, metaphors get out of control and Sam Tanenhaus fills some blank pages with some insomniac ramblings (good as anything else, really). After the jump, your weekly guide to sounding as if you'd know a book if it hit you on your head.
A correction in today's Times notes that "the Advertising column in Business Day yesterday, about videos to promote books, misstated the given name of an illustrator in a quotation by Suzanne Murphy of Scholastic, who discussed a video Scholastic was making for the artist's first pop-up book. She said, 'Maurice Sendak is already legendary,' not 'Maury.'"
Sure, the bombing is relentless and the carnage is intense, but that's what extreme racing's all about, man.
David Brooks notes a growing trend in the American class system: Rich folks are working harder than ever, while your proletariat types are sitting on the couch, drinking iced tea and watching Elizabeth Hasselback's conniption fits. This sort of came as news to us, considering the first rich guy we thought of is the current incumbent in the White House, and he doesn't exactly seem to be burning the midnight oil. And, yeah, maybe a few more CEOs have been putting in extra hours over the last few years, but it seems that they've mainly been providing employment for federal prosecutors. It's wasn't until we read the column again that it hit us: Brooks bases his whole argument on an already discredited Times piece from last week. Why would Dave put forth such a weak, unsupported claim? You could suggest that he's lazy or disingenuous, but we prefer to think that he's just trying to figure out why billionaire Tom Friedman never takes a vacation.
Eat the Press reports on yesterday's NYT anthrax scare: "[T]he envelope containing the suspicious powder (which turned out to be "nonhazardous") was sent with a stamp containing the image of three New York City firefighters raising an American flag at Ground Zero and included the words 'Freedom is not Free.'"
We learned so much about heavy black ladies in this morning's Times. For instance, they're allowed to sell a variety of products ("Blacks regularly appear in commercials selling products as diverse as toothpaste, credit cards and erectile dysfunction medication."). They're often combative. ("Large black actresses have had recurring roles in commercials over the years, and often are cast in roles where their aggressiveness is a defining trait."). And even when they're docile or quiet, you know they're just waiting to explode ("She is not shown being aggressive or loud, but the commercial leaves the impression that if the man had given the wrong answer, she might have erupted.")
Villainous vigilante Bucky Turco of AnimalNY uncovers a sinister new front in the cultural war — T-bombing. The aNYthing blog spotted graffitist Espo (a.k.a. Steve Powers) at Bowery and Delancey Street, apparently mugging with a delivery truck he'd just tagged with the big-T logo of the New York Times' T style mag. We're guessing this is a stunt for the next T, which is all street now, yo. Espo confirmed his NYT involvement with a concise "Yes." Regardless of what you think of the magazine, that's a mighty nice gothic consonant.
Interesting piece in this Sunday's Times about interns. Turns out they're young, they're hip, and they'll keep you connected with the youth of today.
• Sulzbergers buying up NYT stock. Insert your own "at least someone's buying The Times" joke here. [Boston Herald]
• Is Portfolio the new Inside.com? Probably not, but it gives us the excuse to mention that Kurt Andersen quote about how getting funding for Inside was as easy "as getting laid in 1969" again. Ha ha, what a douchebag. [Hard, Cutting]
• After last week's piece on Wikipedia, The New Yorker turns once again to the Internet, looking this time at citizen journalists or some such. We liked it better when The New Yorker's web coverage was mainly just Rebecca Mead writing about Meg Hourihan. [NYer]
Thanks for your many fine submissions to our Great Moments in Journalism project; please keep them coming. (Please note this is a different e-mail address than the tips line: We'd hate to bog down that inbox and miss a sighting of Frankie Muniz at Privilege.) Our inaugural candidate comes from that hometown favorite The New York Times, where Dan "Don't Call Me D. Francis" Barry recounts the story of Bryce McMillan, the Bronx toddler who fell seven stories but miraculously survived.
Jack Shafer at ye olde Slate points out a study full of hard math and big words. In essence, the study concludes that the New York Times' efforts to penetrate more local markets tend to draw local readers who are more educated. As the educated readers turn away from local papers, those local papers tend to run less material that might have appealed to an educated readership. The next step is soft-pedaled by the study, but Shafer pounces, describing the net effect as a "dumbing down" of local papers; after all, if they lose the eggheads, they can run more stupid shit to bring in the yahoos without fear of alienating the ostensibly intelligent (we appreciate this strategy around here, obviously). In other words, the NYT is destroying America. Again. We tried to read the study itself for more in-depth analysis, but got distracted by cartoons.
